The present invention relates generally to printed circuit board assembly and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method to retain an assembled component on one side of a double-sided printed circuit board during reflow of other components subsequently positioned onto an opposite side of the double-sided printed circuit board.
Printed circuit boards (PCBs) generally comprise a composite of organic and inorganic materials with external and internal metal traces, permitting assembled electronic components to be mechanically supported and electrically connected. A typical printed circuit board includes one or more metal layers, such as routing and/or plane layers, and one or more insulation layers. Each of the insulation layers is disposed substantially between successive metal layers with each outer layer of the printed circuit board comprising one of the metal layers. Each of the metal routing layers is patterned to transfer signals between assembled electronic components, and each of the metal plane layers, such as a power plane layer or a ground plane layer, is designed to distribute power or ground, respectively, throughout the printed circuit board.
Electronic components are assembled onto at least one of the outer metal layers of the typical printed circuit board. On a single-sided printed circuit board, for example, electronic components are assembled on only one of the outer metal layers, referred to as the primary side of the printed circuit board. The opposite side of such a printed circuit board is called the secondary side. After the electrical components have been positioned onto the primary side via, for example, a pick-and-place machine (not shown), the single-sided printed circuit board typically undergoes a single soldering stage. Alternatively, electronic components can be assembled onto both the primary side and the secondary side of a double-sided printed circuit board. To assemble electrical components onto both sides, double-sided printed circuit boards must typically undergo multiple soldering stages.
Today, a significant number of electrical components are surface mounted to printed circuit boards. The driving force behind the use of surface-mount technology (SMT) components is reduced package size, improved utilization of printed circuit board real estate, and simplified assembly. Surface-mount components are positioned onto metal pads or lands, which are formed on the outer metal layers of the printed circuit board, by applying solder paste to the relevant lands before positioning the surface-mount components. Comprising solder and flux, the solder paste liquefies during a manufacturing stage called solder reflow (or more simply reflow), and the surface tension of the liquefied solder enables the surface-mount components to align with, and to couple with, the relevant lands. Thus, when the solder cools and solidifies, the surface-mount components each are assembled onto the printed circuit board.
To more efficiently utilize printed circuit board real estate, double-sided printed circuit boards are used with surface-mount components assembled onto both the primary side and the secondary side of the printed circuit board. On a double-sided printed circuit board, surface-mount components first are assembled, i.e. positioned and reflowed, on an upward-facing side, such as the primary side, of the printed circuit board. The double-sided printed circuit board then is flipped over such that the opposite side, such as the secondary side, faces upwardly, and additional surface-mount components are positioned onto the secondary side. After the additional surface-mount components have been positioned, the double-sided printed circuit board undergoes a second reflow stage to liquefy the solder on the upward-facing secondary side. During the second reflow stage, however, the entire double-sided printed circuit board is heated, and the solder on the primary side also liquefies with the surface-mount components assembled onto the primary side facing downwardly in opposition of gravity.
Unlike through-hole components, most surface-mount components do not include any retaining devices, such as through-hole conductive pins or locating posts, to substantially maintain component placement during the second reflow stage. Although adequate to maintain component placement on the upward-facing secondary side of the double-sided printed circuit board, the surface tension of the liquefied solder during the second reflow stage generally is insufficient to maintain component placement for heavier surface-mount components previously assembled onto the downward-facing primary side. Due to the effects of gravity, one or more of the surface-mount components previously assembled onto the downward-facing primary side can separate from or become misaligned with the relevant lands when the solder again liquefies during the second reflow stage. For example, the inverted surface-mount components during the second reflow stage can separate from the double-sided printed circuit board and/or undergo a translation or a rotation. As size and pin-count have increased in recent years, surface-mount components, such as ball-grid arrays (BGAs) and connectors, have increased in mass and, therefore, are more prone to separate from, or become misaligned with, the double-sided printed circuit board when inverted and reflowed. To retain these larger surface-mount components, adhesives presently are applied to the double-sided printed circuit board before the surface-mount components are positioned. Automatic adhesive application, however, requires additional equipment, which must be purchased and maintained; whereas, manual application of the adhesive results in unpredictable quality and increased labor expenses.
In view of the foregoing, it is believed that a need exists for an inexpensive apparatus to retain inverted components on double-sided printed circuit board assemblies during subsequent reflow stages that overcomes the aforementioned obstacles, limitations, and deficiencies in the manufacture of double-sided printed circuit board assemblies.